Jan Erazim Vocel

Jan Erazim Vocel August 23, 1803, Kutná Hora – September 16, 1871, Prague was a Czech poet, archaeologist, historian and cultural revivalist Though as heir to his father's trade he was to become a baker, his parents, observing his youthful enthusiasm for Gothic history, eventually heeded his academic calling1

Contents

1 Education

2 Literature

3 Science

4 Legacy

5 References

6 External links

Educationedit

At 14 Vocel moved to Prague to attend a Piarist college-preparatory high school Concomitantly he attended philosophy lectures at Charles University Already by that time he had begun writing fiction, of which efforts only two complete works survive—Krvočíše, a romance about growing grapes in celebration of Charles IV King of Bohemia and Holy Roman Emperor, and Harp, a tragedy On graduating, Vocel departed from Prague to Vienna, where he studied philosophy and law In order to support himself and assist his family, Vocel accepted tutoring appointments in various homes of the ancient Bohemian Czernin family and later of other noble families, eg, the House of Harrach, where he established himself as an abiding mentor to nascent businessman / arts patron Jan Harrach 1828–19091

On graduating from the University of Vienna, Vocel returned to Prague, where, in 1843, he helped to establish the Archaeological Society2

Literatureedit

Vocel's literary work reflects a pathological interest in medieval history, archeology and historiography By and large his two most significant works are thought to be Poslední Orebit and Přemyslovci

In 1850 Vocel was appointed Associate Professor of Archeology and Art History at the Charles University As author of numerous articles and scientific papers he inadvertently introduced what would later become a widely accepted method of chemical analysis to determine the age of bronze objects3

A highlight of his literary career was the two-volume Prehistory of the Czech Lands 1866, '68, in which he posited a sound foundation for archeology in Czech science Though beyond its expanded description of his method of chemical analysis the work did not offer archeological breakthroughs or newer methods, it has exercised considerable influence abroad

Together with Czech writer, historian, museum director, patriot and publicist Karel Vladislav Zap 1812–1871, Vocel contributed to the popularity and development of Czech archeology through their 1854 co-founding of a specialized organ, "Archaeological Monuments" edited by Zap from 1854 to '66, in which Czech history, from its mythic beginnings to the Hussite movement, was examined and celebrated

In 1872 the bourgeois Czech writer Jakub Malý, an early devotee of Czech history and literature and promoter of the study of the English language, published the biography Jan Erazim Vocel4

Commemorative plaque in Kutná Hora Vocelova 349/10

Scienceedit

Vocel inadvertently pioneered a chemical method of determining the age of bronze objects He published numerous scientific and historical-fiction books including his two-part treatise Prehistory of the Czech Lands, which laid a foundation for scientific archeology in the country13

^ Trencsenyi, B, and Kopecek, M, Discourses of Collective Identity in Central and Southeast Europe 1770–1945, Texts and Commentaries, Vol II, National Romanticism: The Formation of National Movements Budapest and New York: Central European University Press, 2007, p 65